Microelectromechanical system (MEMS) technologies have been used to produce various sorts of scanning devices, and particularly miniature scanning mirrors. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,952,781, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a method of scanning a light beam and a method of manufacturing a microelectromechanical system (MEMS), which can be incorporated in a scanning device. Other methods for fabrication of MEMS scanning devices are described in PCT International Publication WO 2014/064606, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, as well.
MEMS technologies have also been used to produce arrays of scanning mirrors. For example, the Lamda scanner module, produced by the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS (Dresden, Germany), is constructed based on a segmented MEMS scanner device consisting of identical scanning mirror elements. A single scanning mirror of the collimated transmit beam oscillates parallel to a segmented scanning mirror device of the receiver optics.
As another example, PCT International Publication WO 2013/140307, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a gimbaled scanning mirror array. As described in this publication, a scanning device includes a substrate, which is etched to define an array of two or more parallel micromirrors and a support surrounding the micromirrors. Respective spindles connect the micromirrors to the support, thereby defining respective parallel axes of rotation of the micromirrors relative to the support. One or more flexible coupling members are connected to the micromirrors so as to synchronize an oscillation of the micromirrors about the respective axes.
In a similar vein, Yang et al. describe a multi-mirror MEMS device in “Phase Synchronization of Micro-Mirror Arrays Using Elastic Linkages,” Sensors and Actuators A95 (2001), pages 55-60. This device is intended to replace a conventional large-area mirror, thus increasing the working frequency and inducing smaller vibration amplitude.